IRAQ NEWS

The Italian Red Cross treated four Iraqi insurgents to secure the release of two Italian women held hostage last year, a Red Cross official has said. (BBC)

Iraq Police Find 36 Dumped Bodies

Police in Iraq say they have found the bodies of 36 men dumped in a shallow river near the town of Kut, south-east of the capital, Baghdad. (BBC)

Shiite Cleric's Soldiers Battle Rivals in Najaf and Basra

Fighting erupted Wednesday between followers of the rebellious Shiite cleric Moktada al-Sadr and his opponents in the holy city of Najaf, killing at least four people and wounding at least 20, officials said. (NY Times)

Saddam's Apologist, Still Joking After 28 Months in Solitary

The family of Tariq Aziz wept as they described their reunion in an American prison outside Baghdad. It was their first meeting in 28 months. (The Times)

Iraq Charter Amendments 'Agreed'

Iraqi political leaders have agreed amendments to the draft constitution as they try to reach consensus on the document, a government spokesman said. (BBC)

INVESTIGATIONS

Pakistan/N. Korea

Qadeer Gave Centrifuges to North Korea: Musharraf

Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf has given details for the first time on the kind of nuclear technology that former top Pakistani nuclear scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan transferred to North Korea, a Japanese media report said yesterday. Musharraf reportedly told Kyodo news agency in an interview that Qadeer provided centrifuge machines and their designs to North Korea. (AFP)

Egypt

Two Dead in Fresh Egyptian Blasts

Two Egyptian policemen have been killed and two others injured in two blasts in northern Sinai, officials said. (BBC)

Spain

Spanish Police Inquiry into Al Qaeda Threat to Vatican

Spanish police have arrested one man in connection with alleged threats by Al Qaeda against the Vatican. (Expatica)

Afghanistan

Afghans Decry Sentences for GIs

Kabul urges appeal of military courts' 'lenient' treatment of soldiers in deaths of two detainees. (AP)

LEGAL DEVELOPMENTS

U.S.

Court Refuses to Free Lodi Men Accused of Terror Camp Ties

But despite a flight risk, the judge says, the men could be released if bail is high enough. (LA Times)

ANALYSIS & OPINION

The Nuclear Rap

It's summer holidays, so what better way for university students to spend a hot afternoon than protesting outside the French, German and British embassies in Tehran. (Asia Times)

The Real Iranian Weapon

Iran is rushing to acquire nuclear arms to compete with its neighbor, Pakistan, with which it shares a 1000km border … Yet despite real fears of a nuclear weapon produced in Iran in the next ten years, the country's more important weapon remains oil. (Asharq al Awsat)

Al Qaeda Will Retreat to Africa, Says U.S. General

A senior U.S. military officer on Wednesday predicted that al-Qaeda fighters in Iraq will move to the "vast ungoverned spaces" of the Horn of Africa once conditions in the country get too tough for them. (The Mail and Guardian)

Safety Is the Test

Will new anti-terror powers actually make Britain safer, or will they merely serve to penalise the obvious and the unlucky? (The Guardian)

A CIA Cover Blown, a White House Exposed

Toward the end of a steamy summer week in 2003, reporters were peppering the White House with phone calls and e-mails, looking for someone to defend the administration's claims about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. (LA Times)

Divided They Stand

In Iraq, the U.S. has orchestrated a constitution that is organically Iraqi. (NY Times)

The Insider Daily Investigative Report (DIR) is a summary of major news articles and broadcasts relating to investigative news, including international terrorism and developments in Iraq. The DIR is edited daily from foreign and U.S. sources by Chris Isham, Hoda Osman and Brinda Adhikari of the ABC News Investigative Unit. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ABCNEWS.